“You’re voids-spurned right they shouldn’t,” Ellix said, glancing at where Fift sat side by side with zirself. “Right out in front of the whole world! What did they think would happen?”

In the lab, Fift pressed zir fingertips together, focusing on the pressure so that ze wouldn’t reach out to touch Shria’s hair, vir shoulder, vir back. “I’m sorry, Shria. That . . . that totally blocks.”

“Yeah, it does. And Vvonda . . . ve just won’t let it go. Ve’s so angry, and so belligerent. Ve can’t keep vir mouth shut. Ve’s alienating people that Pom says we need.” Ve shrugged.

Need for what? Fift wanted to ask. What is Pom doing, and what does ze need me for? But here in the uterine silence of the lab, zir agents drifting drowsily in its murk of privacy, Shria’s warm arm almost touching zirs, ze couldn’t keep hold of the question.

Shria pursed vir lips, vir face hardening, disappointed. “And we’re still stuck there, the four of us—stuck together in that orange goo, and . . . we’re just pretty Kumru-spurned sick of each other . . .”

A chill bit the back of Fift’s necks. If Shria could cast Vvonda aside—Vvonda, the towering beautiful one, the strong one, the sharp hook of longing that Shria’s voice had caught on the last time they’d sat together in a lab like this—if Shria pushed Vvonda away, what chance could Fift have?

Ze wanted Shria’s love to expand, not to contract. Ze wanted Shria’s love to grow until it had room for zir, too.

“I don’t know what those kids expected would happen, holding an Episode out on the docks,” Fasmul said to Ellix. “But you know what they probably didn’t expect? Getting ripped apart by a polysomatic network cut. Is that really all right with you, the Midwives going that far? On kids? On your sibling-cohort’s kid?”

Ellix looked at Fift (who was still slumped, doublebodied and groggy, against the wall) and chewed zir lip. “Fift did expect it,” Ellix said. “The second time, anyway. Ze knew they were going to cut the net, and ze got up anyway.”

Fasmul raised zir eyebrows. “Tough kid.”

“Yeah, but Fasmul,” Uban said. “The Long Conversation . . . in front of Vails?”

“Voids, Uban, maybe it’s time for Vails to hear us,” Fasmul said. “Maybe we wouldn’t be in this mess if we hadn’t hoarded our—” Ze raised zir voice as Uban shook zir head, and Ellix, snorting, turned away. “No, listen, you two, there’s talk of a new Compromise of the Spoons. Esimandru Abatis Esendro of name registry Infinite Solace 3 has endorsed the idea . . .”

“And gotten thrown out of zir proctorship for zir trouble,” Ellix said.

“I’m sorry,” Fift said. “About Stogma.”